Today, we celebrate Earth Day.  Let's admit it, Earth is pretty amazing and has sights that are breathtaking. Our environment is something that needs to be protected. We've all seen satellite photos of our big blue marble, but have you ever seen close ups of some of the cloud details?

Let's take a look at some views of Earth that you may not have seen before and just revel at its awesomeness.

Vortex Streets - The air is a fluid, just like water. When it gets disturbed, vortices can form down stream from barriers. You can see how the islands have caused vortices to spin off and continue spreading out as they get farther away. 

Wave Clouds - When stable air moves over a raised obstruction, like a mountain, wave clouds can form. It is very similar to ripples on water.

Supercell Thunderstorm - Everyone has seen one of these in photos, but how many have seen one from the view of the International Space Station? They may cover multiple counties, but from space it doesn't seem as big.

Open and Closed Cells - Appearing like lace, these are open-cell and closed-cell cumulus clouds. These form when warm air rises and creates clouds. In closed-cell clouds, the air sinks on the edges producing clouds with uneven borders. The reverse happens in open-cell clouds, air sinks in the middle and leaves a hollow pattern.

Skylight from Chris Pritchard on Vimeo

Finally, let's all take a few minutes to appreciate clouds from our point of view by watching this timelapse. Have a wonderful Earth Day!